The other 2 awful Junes

There is the prospect of somewhat better weather during the last week of June, even the chance of temperatures into the high 20s on Thursday. However, overall it still looks like being the 3rd worst June since 1900. The 2nd worst June, 1971, had a mean temperature of 13.5, a value that will be exceeded this June, and it also had 131 mm of rain, a figure that could be exceeded if heavy rain accompanies thunderstorms at the end of the mini heatwave on the 28th. Interestingly, although sunshine amounts were well below average it was not amongst the top 10 dullest Junes. It was a long time ago! Production of the Morris Minor ceased in 1971, decimal currency was introduced and in June the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, was just a few days old. June 1903 was  arguably the worst June since 1900. The mean temperature was 13.2, and in southwest London 183 mm of rain fell. It was a dull month, although nowhere near record breaking. The total sunshine for the month was 184 hours, a figure that is unlikely to be reached this month.  In the year 1903 the Daily Mirror was  first published; six years later a rival paper, the Daily Mail, warned that Germany was preparing to destroy the British Empire. The June of 1909 was easily the dullest since records began with only 105 hours of sunshine. So far this June there have only been 87 hours of sunshine, but Germany is a much more generous player on the world stage than in those gloomy days.